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Mr. Westfield
Maxwell, a large blond man in his mid-twenties, is the acting Divisional Forest Officer in Kyauktada, Burma. After he helps U Po Kyin put down a tiny, non-threatening anti-imperial rebellion in a rural village (which U Po Kyin himself fomented so that he could play the hero), Maxwell shoots one of the rebels to death as the rebel is trying to escape. Afterward, the rebel’s relatives murder Maxwell. The outrage of the British in Burma over the murder of a white man leads to escalating violence and, eventually, a riot.
Maxwell Quotes in Burmese Days
The Burmese Days quotes below are all either spoken by Maxwell or refer to Maxwell. For each quote, you can also see the other characters and themes related to it (each theme is indicated by its own dot and icon, like this one:
).
Chapter 22 Quotes
“Order the police to open fire at once!” shouted Mr. Macgregor from the other side. “You have my authority.”
“And tell them to aim low! No firing over their heads. Shoot to kill. In the guts for choice!”
Related Characters:
Related Themes:
Page Number and Citation:
Explanation and Analysis:
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Maxwell Character Timeline in Burmese Days
The timeline below shows where the character Maxwell appears in Burmese Days. The colored dots and icons indicate which themes are associated with that appearance.
Chapter 2
...who manages a timber firm’s affairs in the area; Ellis, manager of another company; and Maxwell, “acting Divisional Forest Officer.” Mr. Lackersteen has a niece arriving that day and is hung...
(full context)
...man into the club, but Ellis continues to criticize Flory for befriending Dr. Veraswami. When Maxwell tells Ellis to calm down and have a drink, Ellis criticizes all his fellows for...
(full context)
Chapter 5
...the club just then. After Westfield convinces Ellis to cross out the racial slur, he, Maxwell, and Flory also sign Ellis’s message. Flory signs it because he is too cowardly to...
(full context)
Chapter 20
...Veraswami a few days later. In the letter, Veraswami explains that U Po Kyin brought Maxwell and the police to put down the rebellion, though there were only seven rebels. One...
(full context)
...rebels had so few guns (most broken), and the rebellion is so clearly over, that Maxwell goes back to his camp without a guard. Flory, meanwhile, plans to stay in his...
(full context)
Chapter 21
...the club’s general meeting, Flory enters the club lounge and finds Westfield. Westfield mentions that Maxwell won’t come to the meeting because he can’t leave camp but has arranged for Ellis...
(full context)
...carry into the club lounge their six-foot-long bundle and unwrap it. It’s the corpse of Maxwell, who was murdered by the relatives of the fleeing rebel he killed.
(full context)
Chapter 22
Though no European is personally grieved by Maxwell’s death, it enrages them that a white man has been murdered. U Po Kyin, meanwhile,...
(full context)
Chapter 23
...The next morning, Westfield and Verrall return with two men who will be executed for Maxwell’s murder. Meanwhile, Flory visits Dr. Veraswami, who exults that Flory’s quick actions in stopping the...
(full context)
